Editor’s note: This is the second of a three-part series about eastern Tennessee.

I am riding up a mountain in Oliver Springs, Tenn., in a side-by-side ATV, and it’s far more thrilling than any roller coaster I’ve ever been on.

Too nervous to operate the all-terrain vehicle myself, I halfheartedly agree to be a passenger as we prepare for our 6-mile, guided ride up and then back down Buffalo Mountain at Windrock Park.

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I attempt to take photos to distract myself from the fear as my husband goes a bit too fast for my liking.

Still, I am loving every second of it.

Windrock Park, the largest privately owned riding area in the country, has 72,000 acres for off-roading. The trails accommodate all-terrain vehicles, dirt bikes, mountain bikes, 4x4s, buggies and trucks.

As if the ride itself were not enough, there is a breathtaking reward at the top — the Buffalo Mountain Wind Farm. The farm — which has 18 windmills — is a big ecotourism attraction.

Wind energy became a major source of power supply to the Tennessee Valley in 2004. This was the first commercial-scale use of wind power to generate electricity in the southeastern United States. The newer turbines expanded the capacity of the Buffalo Mountain site to 29 megawatts of generation, or enough to power about 3,780 homes, according to the Tennessee Valley Authority.

We could not resist taking several pictures with our press group on top of the mountain. The 15 largest windmills have a 256-foot tower with 139 foot blades spanning 395 feet.

Another ATV destination is Ride Royal Blue in Pioneer, which has a 24-7 trail system that winds through the Cumberland Mountains with night riding permitted. More than 600 miles of trails cover 200,000 acres there with mountain elevations ranging from 820 to 3,350 feet above sea level. The terrain at Ride Royal Blue includes rolling hills with a green valley bordered by a clear creek in an environmentally conscious area maintained by the state parks system.

Both Windrock Park and Ride Royal Blue have on-site camping and other lodging.

Another first-time activity for me during the trip was learning to rock climb at The Wild and Scenic Obed, a national park that with miles of sandstone cliffs amid meandering rivers and dense forests.

Rock climbing at the Obed is quite popular because routes range from 40 to 200 feet in length. My rock was about 50 feet high and was a 5.9 on the Yosemite Decimal System scale, making it an intermediate climb with steeper, more vertical climbs while still having good holds.

Our guides were excellent at explaining how to go about climbing and safety, but I panicked a bit before even reaching the middle and chose not to try to go higher and risk aggravating the osteoarthritis in my knees from many years as a gymnast. (OK, plus I was scared to go much farther once I looked up.)

I am still proud I made it as far as I did with little trouble at all.

Non-adrenaline junkies, visit Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area in the Cumberland Plateau to horseback ride. The 125,000-acre plateau has scenic gorges and sandstone bluffs and 212 miles of horse trails that vary from short, easy day rides to long loops that will take several days to finish.

Big South Fork is unique in that equestrians can stay with their horses at Charit Creek Lodge, a remote hostel and full-service wilderness lodge accessible only by foot, bike or horse. There is no electricity. Instead, each room has a wood stove and kerosene lamp. There are 11 new 10-by-10 horse stalls and tie out, and both include hay.

After our ATV ride, we had dinner at Rickard Ridge BBQ in Cove Lake State Park. The restaurant is well known for its meticulously smoked meats, fried pickles and picturesque views of Cove Lake and the Cumberland Mountains. It’s also a great place to catch live bluegrass music.

If you prefer to dine off the beaten path, McCloud Mountain Restaurant and Lodge — at an elevation of 2,700 feet atop the Cumberland Mountains — is difficult to find but worth the adventure.

Eating filet mignon while looking down on the valley at Norris Lake, the Great Smoky Mountains and North Carolina off in the distance is quite the experience.

Not far away from McCloud Mountain Restaurant is a chance to see members of Tennessee’s flourishing elk herd at the Hatfield Knob Elk Viewing Tower in Campbell County in the 70,000-acre Sundquist Wildlife Management Area. The wildlife area is also a hot spot for birdwatching, wildflowers and butterflies, as well as ATV riders.

The Elk Viewing Tower was designed in 2005 after Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency volunteers planted a 2.5-acre plot of oats and Austrian winter peas, and then gradually planted more plots to encourage elk to stay in the area.

We traveled the 4.2-mile gravel road to the tower by minivan, but Royal Blue provides ATV access for a much smoother ride. Although the elk can be found year-round, your best chance to see a herd is to go at dusk or early morning in autumn.